New wheels

When my IM gets back from Henry I plan to do something about my wheels. Presently, I have 15x6 Fuchs replicas (made in the US) and I'm hoping to run a 195/60 tire in the front and a 195/60 or 205/50 in the rear. The problem, of course, is clearance. Henry suggested that I have the rear wheels widen to 7" with a 50 mm offset to clear the body. I'm also looking at other wheel options (my thread on Boxster wheels). In my search I came across Superlite wheels with a Porsche 5x130 mm bolt pattern. http://www.vtoperformance.com/acatalog/911.html
The 30 mm offset would probably work in the front, but I don't think they would work in the rear with a 195/60 tire.
I like this style of wheel, which is popular with the Miata crowd, but I have no idea what they would look like on a speedster. Anyone come across a photo of a 356 with Minilite/Panasport style wheels?
Ron

How 'bout this? I think they're gorgeous.

Not exactly the wheels you're talking about, Ron, but the look is similar. I wanted Minilites for my Outlaw JPS, but they were too expensive for me. So, we compromised and took a set of Empi wheels, had the spokes powder-coated gray (left the rims satin).

Hey Ron,
I was thinking of getting that wheel, however, after calculating the space under the rear fender, I know it won't fit at the back. That wheel your talking is 6" wide, but the back space is only 4.7" (30 mm offset). I got replica fuch, 5.5" wide with backspace of 5" and it fits very tight in the back. Good luck
Eddy

When you said "bush", I was thinkin' cars; my bad...

HEY VINCE NO WONDER TERI MADE U GET RID OF THE GHIA

Ron,

I will NOT post any pictures here but I will be delivering my wheels to Henry Feb 1st. I should be at the shop most of the morning before heading back south to California. All I will say is at this point they are the only set like them in the world. If you like them I can release the manufactuer to build you a set as well.

BTW they can be built custom to any offset or width needed.

As a friend says "Fun with Cars"......;-)

Ron - If you're running 195/60 up front, a 205/55 in the rear would come a little closer to matching the front diameter than 205/50

These are BRM wheels right ? they look like a 205mm but 17in I thought they only came in a 15in with a 205mm bolt pattern

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e367/Ramunn/typei_6_26_2006_11_14_52_am.jpg

Well put there, Angela. Couldn't have said it better myself. :)

Lane A, I think they're gorgeous too. They look like Superlites from the site I linked in my first post.....or Panasports.

John, those Empi wheels look great on your car. Unfortunately, I need a wheel with a Porsche bolt pattern.

Eddy, I agree, but if I had the wheels widened one inch the offset would end up being 45 mm, which might just work.

Dave, can you email me a photo? I'm presently looking at custom wheels to get the offset I want.

Rick, I like BRM wheels, but I don't think they come in a Porsche bolt pattern.

Felix, I agree-205/50-15 is too small (23.1" diameter). Stock is somewhere around 24.8" inches. 205/55'15 is still a bit on the short side at 23.9", but doable. 205/60-15, at 24.7" is near stock diameter.

I phoned a reputable shop that widens wheels. I was quoted $1000 to polish all four and $600 to widen the two rears. If I had real Fuchs I might be interested, but I won't spend that much money on my replicas.
The search continues.
Ron

Ron,

Just because the stock wheel and tire is 24.7 tall does not mean you can't use a shorter tire and wheel combo. Henry's specs for the IM-6 is 205/55x15 for the rear on the 911(R) Fuchs offset. You might have a speedo issue but nothing else........;-)

I agree the 205/60x15 is the closest you can find to a stock size but the overall size width in a hard corner might rub the top of the inner fender radius. The shorter tire will help eliminate the problem. In the past few weeks I researched just about every brand of tire out there and the Yokohama S.drives have the widest contact patch and the narrowest cross-section I could find.

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/spec.aspx?tire=S.Drive

That said the YK-520 Yokohama' were my second choice. I have a set on my 07 Passat and I love them. Far better than the Pirellis the car came with.

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/spec.aspx?tire=YK520

Hey Ron,

If you can get the 6" with 45mm offset, I think it might work. Unfortunately what they sell is a 30 mm offset. To calculate the backspace, you can use the following link from minilite : http://www.minilitewheels.us/tech.aspx

Good luck, let us know what you come up with.

Eddy

I think I'll buy a wheel and tire simulator http://www.summitracing.com/parts/PHP-01201/
Might save me having to return tires and/or wheels because they don't fit.
Ron

DANG! That's a pretty clever tool!

It's clever all right, but I'm not sure how you'd be able to get the car at the correct ride height with the right compression on the spring for that side. The tolerance between the tire and the rear fender is pretty small and you'd need to be sure that the orientation of the "wheel" was correct for all conditions.

Good point, Lane.
Ron

Perhaps on the side the tire simulator is attached to the brake/drum/rotor (1) put a hydraulic jack under the lower mount for the shock absorber (2), rotate the portion of the tire simulator to the point it touches the ground, (3) rotate the tire simulator 90 degrees to allow lowering the jack an additional inch (to allow for tire compression, then (4) rotate the simulator through the fender well to check for clearance?

Another wheel I'm looking at is the Flat Four 911 Fuchs-15x5.5, with a 45 mm offset. I think that would work in the rear with a 195 mm tire, but a 45 mm offset in the front might mean rubbing on the suspension parts. I guess I could use spacers.
They do have a 'deep' six (six inches wide) but the offset is 35 mm.
The price for a set of four Flat Fours is cheaper than getting my replica wheels polished and stretched.
Here's a link to the wheels (Canadian prices) http://www.cip1.ca/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ACC-C10-6601
Ron

Interesting tool:
http://percyshp.com/WheelRite.html

Scott-

Neat tool. I'd use one, except I'm an idiot.

Ron-

I'm sure you know this, but I ran the number on the Flat 4s you were describing. The 5.5" with 45mm of offset means you'll be sticking out about an inch past the face of the hub with the rim. The 6" with 35mm of offset sticks out just about 5/8" of an inch further. That's a lot for the rear.

If you like the look of the Fuch replicas, I'd think running some spacers on the front (if needed) would be better than paying for custom wheels, as long as you've got the proper studs.

that and you can pick them up 1/2 hour drive from your house I bet ;)

Ron,
I ran into that problem with my Pedrinis and Mahles.
I run spacers on the front with no problems.

Hey Ron,

I got the 5.5 " Flat 4 Fuch replica, the back space is 5" and they fit perfectly at the back and the front I put spacer.

Eddy

Eddy,
How about some photos of the new set-up?

Eddy - what Terry said x2!

What thickness of spacer are you two running? Did you have to install longer wheel bolts (or whatever they're called)?
I'm now considering using my old Fuchs replicas along with Falken Ziex ZE-912 185/65-15 tires. Not exactly what I want, but it may do for now.
Ron

I'm running 3/8" spacers I purchased from CB. Definitely longer bolts than stock, but since you're already using alloy wheels, your existing bolts are probably fine. Are you using bolts or studs with your Fuchs?
The Faulken Ziex is a nice tire. The Yokos work better for me.
Since you're on a pan I suggest you run a truss bar and a stabilizer on the rear and beam braces in the front. They'll help out any tire you choose.

Terry, I had studs. MUCH easier to mount the wheels!
I have Koni Reds on the way and I'm in the process of ordering a Kafter Cup truss bar from VDUB Engineering http://www.vdubengineering.com/page2.htm
My IM already has front and rear sway bars.
Ron

That should read, "have" studs :-)
Ron